Mercy House

ByBrandon Pho |September 26, 2018

Santa Ana is moving ahead to open a new 200-bed homeless shelter by the end of the year, following unanimous Santa Ana City Council approval of a one year operations contract. The location hasn’t been announced.

The shortage of affordable housing in Orange County sent eight homeless people back to the streets last week, because homes weren’t available before they hit the 180-day limit for them to stay at the county’s “Bridges at Kraemer Place” shelter that prepares people to move into housing.

County officials were upbeat at a public forum Saturday morning, painting the picture of an energized and proactive government eager to tackle the increasingly dire straits of the county’s homeless population.

ByIGMAR RODAS |October 14, 2016

Igmar Rodas, an outspoken member of the homeless community at the downtown Santa Ana Civic Center, spent a week chronicling his visits to the homeless shelter and service center the county just opened at the old downtown bus terminal.

While there is wide support for a year-round shelter, a close look at county statements raises questions regarding whether the county will no longer fund seasonal shelters once the year-round shelter is up and running.

While Mercy House has been the go-to homeless services provider for local governments, the organization and its executive director, Larry Haynes, face harsh criticism at the street level. Haynes says he’s working on strengthening his relationships with people in the trenches.

THIS JUST IN:

Judge Nathan Scott has issued a temporary restraining order that was requested by the Orange County Deputies Union to block the release of any misconduct records on use of force, sexual assault and lying while in office. Stay tuned for details.

The OC courthouse initial investigation is complete and there is "no further threat to (the) courthouse or personnel," according to Orange County Fire Authority PIO Captain Larry Kurtz. The suspicious package will now be analyzed at the OC crime lab.

Shakeel Syed, Executive Director of Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development (OCCORD), memorializes Martin Luther King Jr. focusing on a well-known King adage - change comes through continuous struggle - to highlight the challenges ahead for working families in Orange County.

The Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs won their bid on Thursday to shield deputy misconduct records from public release after a state law, SB 1421, was enacted that would allow members of the public to see records about use of force incidents, sexual assaults and lying while on duty. The next hearing, where full arguments on the deputy union’s request to permanently seal records is Feb. 7. Voice of OC leads a media coalition including the Los Angeles Times and Southern California Public Radio that is opposing the union request to seal records.